I have Parkinson/s Disease and my doctor has given me a

Customer Question

I have Parkinson/s Disease and my doctor has given me a letter stating having a dog would help me with depression and other health issues = I live in a 55 plus condo and they have a no pet rule = is there any way we can get around this*Sharon ***************

Good Evening, This is Dr. Stevens, have your dog certified as a therapy dog. It should not be too difficult to do and you can contact your state disability for further laws regarding this. If the pet is a certified therapy dog, they should be exempt from the rules of this community. It is also a great tax write off.

Hello, I am afraid the good doctor has made an mistake about the Therapy Dog title and entitlement. I am a trainer of Service Dogs and I was a Therapy Dog Evaluator for over ten years.A therapy dog has no right under the law, they are used for mental stimulation of others only such as in situations of hospitals, nursing homes, and schools.An emotional support dog also has no rights and your landlord /board can refuse admittance, though it is worth talking to your landlord or board about as they may accept a note from the doctor. But they are under no obligation to do so. A service dog has many rights however this takes two or more years of training. Your best bet if you have physical disabilities where you need a service dog to help you, is to sign up with an organization so you can get put on a list. There are organizations that have what they call volunteer puppy raisers that train the dog for two years or more so the cost involved for the person getting the dog is very minimal.This may help you to understand the differences better https://adata.org/publication/service-animals-booklet What I would do is look on this list for a service dog trainer near you as they may be able to put you in touch with an organization that you can sign up to get a service dog from or they may have the credentials to train a dog for you and give it the public access test and other tests it needs to become your service dog.http://inch.com/~dogs/service.html